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Henri and the Magnificent Snort : A Children’s Book about Bullying, Belonging, and Love
We are all unique. It’s the one thing that we all have in common. Henri, as it turns out, has something especially unique about him. Henri is a French bulldog, and he snorts instead of barking. This was not something Henri noticed or cared about until he and his owner relocated, and he started attending doggie daycare. Henri quickly becomes the target of some genuinely intense bullying from the other dogs. With the new nickname “Pig Dog,” Henri finds himself sad and confused. He even doubts that his wonderful mom will want him around if she realizes he is a Pig Dog.
Henri and the Magnificent Snort, written by Samantha Childs and illustrated by Hannah Farr, is the story of one little French bulldog’s experience with bullying. In this exceptionally well-structured and lovingly-penned tale, Childs sheds light on bullying in a way young readers will both understand and appreciate. Henri is lovable, and readers will cheer for him throughout this precious tale.
Childs’s book is simply a stunning work of children’s literature. I cannot say enough about the impact this book will have on young readers. The use of dogs, rhyming text, and an absolutely beautiful collection of touching illustrations make Childs and Farr’s book a future classic.
Henri and the Magnificent Snort, written by Samantha Childs and illustrated by Hannah Farr, is an invaluable book in bullying education. The lessons about self-confidence, self-worth, and acceptance combine to create a must-have story for elementary classrooms, homeschool programs, and school guidance counselors. I highly recommend Childs and Farr’s book to anyone looking for an easy-to-understand, rhyming storyline to help teach young readers how to value themselves and others.
Pages: 60 | ISBN : 0692149570 | Website
Santa Fe Tom
Tom is a desert box turtle who is shy and quiet. But the thing is, Tom has an amazing singing voice that he has never shared with his friends. He dreams of being able to sing and share his talent with others, but he is just too afraid. One day while practicing a surprise birthday song for their friend, all the animals hear his amazing voice and tell him how talented he is. With the help of his friends, Tom tries out for the opera and learns about self-confidence and working through his fears. Can he make his dreams of singing for all the animals come true?
Santa Fe Tom, written by Rachel Bate and illustrated by Rebecca McGuire Jacob, is a heartwarming story written in verse about overcoming fears and learning to have self-confidence. This is also a story about friendship, supporting friends, and encouraging one another to be their best possible selves.
In addition to this wonderful story, there are reference facts about the desert box turtle that teachers and families can talk to children about. The artwork is magnificent and inspirational for children. Rebecca really captured Tom’s emotions in the illustrations, and children will be able to relate to his feelings.
Santa Fe Tom is a captivating picture book that children will enjoy reading and looking through. The important message about believing in yourself and supporting your friends shines through each page and makes for wonderful discussion openers with younger kids. Readers will want to keep this children’s book on their shelves to share for generations.
Pages: 38 | ISBN: 1645432696
Tierra Day
When Tierra joins her eagle friend Eli for a walk along a nature trail, they are dismayed at the amount of trash scattered around the landscape. They meet up with Monte Mountain Lion on the trail and brainstorm ways to clean up land together. They devise a plan to hold Tierra Day on Earth Day, a celebration and community clean-up event to help humans and animals.
Tierra Day, written by Rachel Bate, is an inspiring children’s book that teaches the importance of recycling and cleaning up after yourself. The story talks about how keeping the Earth clean is a community effort. One person alone can not do it all, and this story highlights the value of getting the entire community involved. The animals even work together to surprise the humans on this special day.
The artwork done by Rebecca Jacob is beautiful and colorful. The paintings will appeal to children with their vivid colors and textures. I especially liked Monty; his expressions made me laugh.
At the end of this educational book is a fact sheet on Earth Day and a glossary; this makes it perfect for classrooms and teachers to use for a lesson on Earth Day. Many children’s books on Earth Day focus just on actually cleaning up and the importance of recycling. What stood out for me in this book was that the planning was discussed. The author emphasizes how important it is to get the word out and get involvement from the community, even the Mayor and Governor. This shows children that it is the responsibility of all people, no matter how important their jobs are, to help keep the Earth clean and trash-free.
Tierra Day is a well-thought-out and written children’s book with an important message about doing your part to keep your community clean. This book would be excellent for anyone who wants to teach children the importance of recycling and how taking care of the Earth impacts not just humans but the animals we share the planet with.
Pages: 38 | ASIN : B0BGZXNCWV
Pixie Van Dimple and the Wrong Kind of Plastic
Pixie and Trixie Van Dimple are enjoying a day at the seaside with their family. After telling their dad, they were going to the loo, they sneak off to the sweet shop. After enjoying their finds, they realize they need to hide the evidence, but there is no trash or recycling bin in sight. So Pixie does the one thing she can think of, lets the plastic bag of trash fly off in the wind, straight into the sea. Thinking they are free and clear, they continue with their day. Soon though, from the water arises a monster. It is made out of all the discarded plastic, and trash humans have carelessly tossed away. This causes a worldwide incident, and the ECO Defense system is activated. Can Earth be saved from this plastic trash monster?
Pixie Van Dimple and the Wrong Kind of Plastic, written by Lynn McAllister, is an exciting children’s book that teaches about the dangers of throwing away plastic and especially tossing it into the ocean. It also highlights how communication lines run through the ocean seabed, and when trash is littered through the ocean, it can impact the world’s ability to communicate. The characters are dramatic and entertaining and are portrayed in a manner that will appeal to preteen readers using examples of social media as a way of reporting the disaster at hand. The rhyming narrative adds to the humor of the story and adds a fun twist to a monster tale. In addition, the illustrations add to the humor and strengthen the emotions the author is portraying. There are many terms and abbreviations in this book, which gives families and classes a variety of things to discuss, covering multiple subjects.
Pixie Van Dimple and the Wrong Kind of Plastic is an educational children’s adventure book that will appeal to older elementary readers. The colorful illustrations and lyrical text will keep them engaged as they follow the drama of Pixie and her family. With lessons on the importance of recycling, taking care of the Earth, and protecting our oceans and wildlife, this will make an excellent storybook for a classroom or library.
Pages: 34 | ASIN : B0BCH2Q6MM
Adventures with Pop Pop at Grant’s Farm
In this touching story written by Warren Martin, we follow Dean and Levi, who learn about the importance of spending quality time with family. All families have their traditions. It could be yearly summer vacations, specific foods during the holidays, or a family trip. In, Adventures with Pop Pop at Grant’s Farm this is where Dean and Levi year after year spend time with their loved ones on a family trip. We watch through sweet illustrations done by Kat Powell as each member grows and connects with one another with every passing year.
Children will love following Dean and Levi as they visit Grant’s Farm. They will see all the different animals on the farm. It is also great to see how they return for other holidays and how things change and stay the same, highlighting how one place can bring many different memories and emotions. It is touching to see how not only did the farm change over time but so did the family.
This story hits a very emotional spot by the end. It showcases the time we all have together and highlights the fact that we should all fully enjoy the experiences we have with one another and be so grateful for the time allotted to us. Our love and memories of the past make up a good part of who we are as people. The message of family is delivered clearly enough for any reader to grasp and enjoy.
Adventures with Pop Pop at Grant’s Farm is a touching children’s book about the importance of cherishing family. This book made me reflect on my memories with loved ones who are still with us and those who are not. Although it made me tear up by the end, they were happy tears. I would recommend this to any reader; just maybe grab a tissue or two.
Pages: 42 | ASIN : B0BFM85GX7
Let’s Celebrate Being Different
Being different can be an extremely tricky thing, especially for young children. In Let’s Celebrate Being Different by Lainey Dee, we are introduced to a very special and remarkable character, Todd. He is part bird, bear, and tiger. He is visiting his grandmother for the weekend and will be attending the Friday Night Club with other children he has never met before. He does not have many friends because he is homeschooled, and hopes that his being different won’t keep him from making some friends. He is rightfully nervous, but his grandmother cheers him on and reassures him that being different is not a bad thing.
I adored that the author’s purpose going into writing this book was to help others not only recognize but embrace how different we all are. That we should celebrate that fact and fully live happy, joyous lives because of it. Everyone can relate to feeling out of place or even strange when we compare ourselves to others. The author does a remarkable job of shedding light on this issue and creating a scenario where the worries are shared and acknowledged but then ratified of any negativity.
The writers’ characters can find common ground and be made to see how we are more alike than we realize but still so unique that we are able to shine in our own way. It is such an important message for growing minds and can aid in improving self-esteem and self-image. Also, learning to accept others is another important message given in this story, which is also critical for adolescent minds. It helps in learning more about other cultures, religions, and even civil courtesy.
Let’s Celebrate Being Different is a well-written children’s book for younger elementary-age children that teaches them self-confidence and self-acceptance. This would make a wonderful story for teachers to have in their classrooms to help children adapt to new environments and new classmates.
Pages: 23 | ASIN : B0BCH7DT6Z
1 2 3 Count with Me on Granddad’s Farm
Children’s author Valerie D. Johnson has written an engaging counting book titled 1 2 3 Count with Me on Granddad’s Farm. This heartwarming story about a family visiting the family farm is told through counting different things on the farm, starting with one farmhouse sitting on a hill. Then, as the family counts to ten, readers follow along and learn about life on a farm.
This excellent picture book has a lot to offer young readers. The first thing that stood out to me is the different levels of text, giving children of different ages the ability to read and grasp what is going on in the story. Each number is displayed in numerical form as well as spelled out. Next is a simple sentence that beginning readers can follow. After that is a longer explanation of what is happening in the story. This fantastic book can be read at all levels and still make sense. It is easy to follow the numbers and the illustrations done by Cee Biscoe read along without having to read each of the descriptive paragraphs. One example is on the page for number 6. “Six horses work on the farm. Can you find all six? count with me!” This is enough for children to understand the number and count along, but there is more information about horses, what they like to eat, and how to care for them. This layout allows the book to have greater educational use and keeps it interesting for a broader range of children.
1 2 3 Count with Me on Granddad’s Farm will encourage children to read and learn to count while learning about life on a farm creatively and actively. Counting along with the storyteller makes this an active reading children’s book rather than one they would just sit and listen to. At the end of this book, there are notes and discussion starters, as well as a dice counting page. These extra resources are invaluable to teachers and home educators to help turn this into a complete learning unit. This would make an excellent addition to a home or classroom library.
Pages: 32 | ASIN : B0B498WYW2
The ‘Tail’ of a Trio
Three dogs have had a very different life up until this point. One dog, Addie, has a loving home with an owner she adores. She became her human’s assistant and works in their therapy practice with her. Addie is a therapy dog. Next is Rue. Rue had a loving home to start, but then one day, her humans disappeared, leaving her behind. She was rescued and brought to a new home, but she was always worried about being replaced and left again. The third dog, Bee, grew up in the pound; she never knew love, only stress and anxiety, and loud noises scared her. This well-written children’s book tells the story of how the three meet and become friends.
The ‘Tail’ of a Trio is written by Katherine Scott, a licensed therapist. She uses the dogs in this story to explain how therapy dogs help people and some situations in that they can be of service. Told from the dogs’ perspective, this heartwarming book can help children suffering from anxiety to see their feelings are normal and valid. I love that Scott explains different therapy terms and practices in the story. This is a friendly and gentle way to introduce the concept to children, especially kids who are unsure about therapy or feel something is wrong with them attending therapy.
The story is conversational and moves comfortably, giving readers time to talk about concepts and situations. I feel this book would help children that have anxiety understand that they are not alone and it is ok. In addition, the three dogs make the story approachable and less scary than if it were humans doing the same thing.
The ‘Tail’ of a Trio is an extraordinary tale of friendship, compassion, and understanding. Children will learn much from this short story and enjoy its artwork. Each dog has their own unique personality, and children will be able to find one to identify with. This is a beautiful book for therapists to have and recommend to help normalize therapy.
Pages: 34 | ASIN : B0B8334M45
LITERARY TITAN 